The Divine Crimson
by KingTayter
Summary: Vampire AU; Humanity driven in walls to abide by the new government. Those who choose to not follow the new set of rules are considered rebellious and are cast away as less than scum; Eren, a hot headed, heavy dreamer sets out to make the immortal leaders demise his goal. But one in particular finds his eyes and attitude too feisty and rare to kill away so soon. Riren
1. Chapter 1

**So this is a vampire AU; I've plotted it out and know exactly where I'm going with this. This was a really large chapter itself and I'm going to try and keep all the chapters as big as this once, which will mean that it more than likely won't get updated as fast as the others but when it does it will be big!**

**So I just want to say that this is an AU so I'm going to try to stick to a VERY similar storyline as SNK but with a few exceptions; such as Levi being the villain and part enemy as well as Erwin, Hanji, etc. All will be revealed soon my sweet tarts.**

* * *

The cold night air nips at my exposed nose playfully as well as painfully; I grunt and pull my scarf up higher on face, nuzzling into it as I wait patiently for Mikasa and Armin to come out of the small rundown store. I kicked the broken and rusted over sign that had once hung over the door; I remember back when I use to visit this store nearly every day with my mother to get food or something. That was before they emerged and took over, before nearly everything was destroyed and before they killed my mom.

Vampires; they exist and had made the point perfectly clear nearly seven whole years ago by slaughtering nearly all of our government and replacing it with them in head charge. Things changed after that; there was a war, a tiny and futile war, it killed a lot of innocent people including my mother and left the whole country in chaos. You either kneeled to their presence or were drained to the bone.

Once the war was over they established a new way of life, a new way to gain favor; blood banks. They were located all throughout the country; when they were first established it was required that all humans were to go and register their blood in, giving away our identities and background; this went for any newborns as well. Of course there were obviously the few rebellious groups that hid away in the very shadows that the monsters had emerged from; I, Mikasa and Armin included.

We had always been close as kids; me watching over and trying to protect Armin while Mikasa tried to protect me. While Mikasa is my adopted sister, Armin is my best friend; he had lost his parents right in the beginning of the war and then after the blood banks had rose up his grandfather left to try and get some money for us; we never saw him again.

While I knew for certain my mother was dead, my father I had no idea about; he had left previously the day our city, Shiganshina, was attacked in the crossfire of the war. We waited days on our house; he never came back either. So it was just the three of us, living off of whatever we could scavenge and find.

Very few places still sold to those without the identification bracelet, they were illegal. Currency was still a thing and if you had a rare blood type you were flooded with it; but those who refused to donate a single drop of their blood were marked as rebels and outcasts. It's illegal to sell thing to us, we're unimportant and useless nobody would care if we were killed.

Along the lines of us trying to survive on the bare minimum of what we could manage to get we had run into a rather large rebel group; they referred to themselves as the 'Wings of Freedom'. They were notorious for large cult slayings of the blood sucking beasts, leaving signs and warnings to those who are on top. The government hadn't really paid much attention to the group, at least until a month ago; somehow one of us had managed to get a hold of someone important; a head of one of their top banks. This did not go through well; they were tracing after us, they want us to disappear and pay, more than likely kill us in front of the rest of the country as an act of power. Mikasa wants to leave the group, she doesn't think it's safe for me.

I want to murder every single one of them, watch the light drain through their eyes as I drive a stake right through their dead hearts just as they had drained the life from my mother's eyes. I don't care whether or not I die in the end, but I refuse to do so until I watch them crumble down back into the ashes from which they first had rose from.

"Eren!" speak of the she-devil and so she emerges, I turn and look over at her, she's holding the door open with her foot a load of food cradled to her chest in her arms. Armin comes shuffling out from behind her, his vibrant blonde hair covered by a thick jacket that he must have gotten from the inside.

"How'd you get all that?" I ask in amazement, usually we only get a few loafs of bread and the occasional good treats like candy, which was extremely hard to come by now a days; but they had everything, it looked like they had looted the fucking store. I narrow my eyes suspiciously and walk over to them, peering into the store. It's empty and dirty, shelves knocked over.

"He wasn't there, better make a use of it while we still can" She shrugs her shoulders, keeping the door propped open with her leather and fur winter boots.

"Anything still in there?" I question, looking hungrily at the food. Armin grins widely, nodding in excitement.

"I feel bad taking his stuff but he was always a little mean to us anyways; Just check the date on the stuff if you find anything worth taking!" I nod at his warning and step into the ruined, run down building. Glass crunched under my boots as I walked through the store. It reeked like decay and death, like most rundown sides of cities.

I ran through some of the items on the shelves, tossing outdated junk over my shoulder; at least the ones I even had the stomach to touch. There were some things that had been salvaged through the years. I managed to find a couple packs of skittles and a can of pinto beans; hey with the way my stomach is grumbling I'm not one to complain.

I snoop around a bit; it's not like the owner to be gone and plus he's bound some sort of secret stash of cash somewhere. I sling by bag down off my shoulder, pulling the top of and dumping my finds into it before reclosing it and leaving it by the door with Armin and Mikasa whom both raise an eyebrow; I shrug my shoulders and waggle mine at them.

"Who knows, the old guy might have wads of cash hidden somewhere" I say jokingly.

"Eren you shouldn-" Whatever warning Mikasa was trying to tell me I ignore and turn on my heels back into the store, I hear her scold and yell after me but she doesn't try to stop me; she knows me too well and knows I won't listen. I eye his cash register with a grin, jumping up on the counter and swinging my legs over the side, landing coolly on the other side of it; normally where the old fat merchant would be. His register is slightly ajar, revealing on a mere couple of dimes and quarters. I frown, digging them out of the rusted thing. I drop the coins into the pocket of my coat; there has to be more than that.

I rummage from behind his counter, finding a pretty decent gun, ammo included but other than that; nothing. I consider just turning back to the front of the store and leaving out to head back, the sun was nearing setting and it was dangerous to be out too late at night, but a sliver of light catches my eye.

"Eren, you need to hurry up" Armin frantically whispers inside of the store, shuffling the items in his hands a bit uncomfortably.

"Shhh, I think I found something" I whisper back, kicking a dusty rug away, more of the light leaking through a crack in the floor; false floor. Jackpot.

I grab the little handle to the floor door, lifting it up with easy to reveal a broken staircase leading downward. I probably shouldn't descend down the stairs but like always I ignore the nagging feeling in the back of my mind and made my way cautiously down the stairs; but not before grabbing a broken piece of chair with me.

I stumble towards the bottom of the stairs, where the light got a hell of a light brighter. A hidden little cellar room perhaps; I blink to adjust to the new light, looking around the room. Immediately my eyes are drawn to the mess in the middle of the room.

At first I think it's a dog but then I realize what exactly it is; blood pools around the mass of meat and shredded clothes. I want to believe that it was just an animal, that a wolf or other beast had come on done this to the poor man but I know exactly what it is.

I gag loudly, leaning against the railing of the stairs and coughing, I can't hold back the unsettling feeling in my stomach and my entire lunch comes rushing up out my mouth. I turn and dart back up the stairs; only one thing can be capable of that. I run up to Mikasa and Armin, the sun is getting dangerously close to the horizon. The give me wide questions eyes and I grab my bag and start for the ice and snow covered streets.

"We need to go, no" I say in a rushed voice, they jog and catch up with me; they had packed all of their findings in their bags while I was 'exploring'.

"What did you find?" Mikasa inquired, pressing close by my side, Armin on the other.

"He's dead" I say blandly tears prickling my eyes "An abberant is somewhere near, it was too fresh, we need to get back to headquarters"

"An abberant!" Armin nearly shrieks, I turn and shush him but the information urges us to walk a bit faster.

"There's no other possible way, he was running from it, he had a gun but he knew it wouldn't work if it was an animal he would have left it where he did. He went to hide but it got him before he could" I deducted, motioning to the pistols handle sticking out from the side of my right boot. Mikasa gives me a worried glance as we make out way back to headquarters.

"We'll need to tell the others, an aberrant in the vicinity can only lead to more disaster" she said before adding in a low voice "We can't go up against something like that"

I want to deny it but I know better. Aberrant were not your average vampire, no, they were more like unfinished vampires. They were once human, bitten but not drained completely; normally if given blood from the one they were bitten from it would result in a new vampire depending on who did the biting but if left to die slowly…they turn into horrible rabid beasts. No recollection of their humanity, only a hunger that they can't control. They rip apart humans, devouring any piece of them they can until they die, once their prey's heart stops beating they lose interest. It's gruesome and disgusting, one of the weapons that the vampires had used against us; they'd create one in a rebellious city and let it roam, slaughter men, women and children alike, creating more and more of them until the rebellious flames were put out.

The monsters were rare to come by nowadays, rare and deadly; once bitten, being if you survive the attack, you would slowly and painfully turn into the beasts. It's gruesome and disgusting; your body practically destroys itself and reforms into something that was once considered only real in nightmares. Luckily enough for him, he wasn't spared; whatever aberrant had gotten a hold of him didn't give him any chances to run.

"Yeah" I sigh in defeat, following her "We should probably get back"

We made our way out of the cold and barren city; following down the desolated highway and coming to a stop under a large stone arc that had been used for an overpass. Now, it was stone and rubble, aside from the small sewer hole that was partially covered by a rather big rock. I handed my bag to Mikasa and lifted the miniature boulder, moving it to the side to reveal the entire entrance.

Armin went down first, then Mikasa and finally me; It was a lot harder to get the boulder back to somewhat cover the hole than it was to remove it and seeing as I had a good amount of strength it was generally me who did it. Once it was placed in a decent position, where only the slimmest piece of light could peep through, I descended down the metal rusty ladder.

Above, peering inside, it would look like a ruined sewer system; once down into the place though it was a system, what had once been used to carry water had tried over and been re-designed as a rail cart in order to carry supplies. The different tunnels were now our hallways; and while the place reeked like rotten flesh, it was home.

It was roughly dusk; the night watchers should be eating with the others in the main hall or getting ready for their shifts. Everyone had a job, your job depended on your rank; as of now me, Mikasa, and Armin are just the errand runners. Scavengers.

I shove the old wooden dining hall door open, ignoring the way it slams against the stone wall. I'm sick and tired of running around, during the d_ay, _and doing nothing; there's no danger, no thrill and I'm nowhere near helping in the overthrow. All I do is get food.

"It's about time you three came back, we were about to send Hannes to go scrape up your remains" Jean, a horse faced pathetic shit that had the hots for my sister pretty hard, snorted from out usual table. A few heads turned to look at us, but most remained busy with whatever it is that they're doing.

"No time for shit talking, where's Shadis?" I reply to him, tossing my bag down by the bench next to the lazy asshole. He smirks in amusement at my obvious frustration but doesn't say anything as Mikasa is right next to me. I wouldn't have a problem with him if it weren't for his cowardly attitude; honestly the only reason why he is even here is for protection, he refuses to try and better himself and join the nightwatch.

He has a very military get up but don't let that fool you; he was once a pompous rich kid who had gotten everything he ever wanted in life, take away the wealth and you have what's left of him. A cowardly horse faced bastard. The underside of his head was shaved, leaving his bangs and the rest of the upper half to hang over and frame his long face; he is rather tall, and skinny too, not really a good combination. He light brown eyes shine with a hidden jealousy and an anger that he can't control, it pissed me off more; all that potential wasted on someone like him.

"Don't know, probably off yelling at some new trainees" he joked, I scowl and shove past him, making him choke on whatever it was that he was drinking.

"Eren!" Mikasa calls after me, I ignore her and move to the head table, a bunch of nightwatchers were gathered around it laughing together and clanking beer mugs together, they regard me with unfazed eyes as I approach the table.

"Where's Shadis!" I bark out, grinding my teeth at their smug and drunken persons.

"Relax, Eren" Hannes, a man who had been relatively close with my parents before the outbreak, spoke up in a slurred and intoxicated voice; he reached out and patted me roughly on the shoulder with a smile. I jerk away from his touch with a glare, Mikasa isn't all that happy either.

"An aberrant is in the city near here" I shout out, slamming my hands down on the wooden table, startling a few of the soldiers.

"An aberrant?" Hannes questions, a look of fear crossing his features, he glances over to Mikasa nervously "Is this true, Mikasa?"

"Yes, we found the corpse of the merchant that owned the Silver Mug inside dismembered" Mikasa informed them. I want to believe that they're going to do something, anything now that I told them the news but in actuality most of them had lost interest and returned to looking for more alcohol. Not all nightwatchers took their jobs as slack as these men but the majority did and it angered me to no ends.

"Just leave it be, it won't bother us unless you left a trail for it to follow" one of the men laughed, I shot him a glare, my fingers digging into the palms of my hands.

"Excuse me you fat, lazy piece of shit!" I all but scream out, the hall grows quite all eyes trained on the activity that I was causing "More people could die! Isn't it your job to protect the peop-"

A rough smack hits me in the back of my head, sending it reeling forward; I shout out in pain and glare up at Mikasa. She bows to the drunken bastards, who look like they're about to pounce on me and rip me a new one with the weapons I doubt they even remember how to use.

"I'm sorry for his brashness, he's just in shock" she apologizes in my place; I feel tears from her slap prickle my eyes. She turns on her heels and grabs me by my collar, jerking me away from the table and back over to our own. Armin seated beside Jean who was trying his best not to laugh at my outburst.

"Mikasa I can handle myself!" I snap out her as she shoves me down next to Armin.

"There would have been a fight, Eren. Just leave it be" she scolded me as if I was her son. This is the overprotectiveness I'm so tired of bearing; I can't breathe without her right there beside me. I want to become one of the Nightwatchers so she'll stop treating me like I'm kid, just one chance. I groan as a bowl of what looks like old and cold porridge and pushed in front of me; today is obviously not the day.

* * *

I can't sleep; images of the poor old man's body keep flashing in my mind like a broken record. I hate myself for being too weak to do anything; I haven't accomplished anything in this disgusting place. At times I reflect on what Mikasa had told me and Armin before we arrived here; that we were better off on our own together somewhere safer. I understand her on some levels; being in this group is practically painting a big red target on your back, but, it's a home; a family, a place to sleep and a place to eat. And it's one step closer to trying and ridding the world of the blood suckers. I toss and turn wildly, trying to shake the images out of my head.

"Eren" Armin calls out to me in a hushed whisper. I turn to my left, lying on my side; his mat is right next to mine I probably disturbed him. I blink, forcing my eyes to somewhat adjust to the darkness; his bright sky eyes are dull and swimming with emotion as I look over at him.

"What" I whisper back, leaning up on my elbows which then dug rather painfully into the concrete below me; beds weren't really a thing down in the underground rebel house, you had two blankets and a pillow.

"I keep thinking about the old man" he replies, his voice is shaking; he's been crying. I sigh lowly, and reach over to rub his arm a bit, he trembles and I hear him sniffle audibly.

"Shh, don't cry, you're stronger than that" I try to soothe him, he nods lightly and curls back and away from my touch, I let my hand fall back down to my sides. The only sound being heard throughout the large room was the snores of a few other boys and the wet dripping of water from leaky pipes.

"Do you think they'll get the aberrant?" I think back on the beer and whiskey that our 'lead' soldiers had been consuming and almost I speak my mind. I bite my lower lips harshly, enough to draw blood ad shake my head.

"I'm sure they will, Armin" I lie to him and to myself, his snores soon join in with the rest and all too soon I feel my own eyes begin to sag downward.

* * *

"Jaeger!" my face scrunches up at the somewhat familiar voice speaking into my ear, I groan loudly and move to turn but hands are grasping my shoulders, shaking my body. My eyes shoot open and my body almost jolts forward, I open my mouth to cry out but a firm hand presses over my lips.

I squint and try to make out the face of my assaulter; blonde hair matches with golden fierce eyes that examined me with pride and determination.

"It's only me" Thomas grins, releasing my face from his hold and leaning back on the balls of his feet. I sputter and glare at him, noticing the rest of his little gang was behind him.

"What do you want, Thomas?" I ask, wiping at my face with the sleeve of my jacket, he uses his thumb and points behind him at his friends.

"Reiner and Bert woke us up saying that the Aberrant you guys saw was near here" he informed me "They are going with Annie and a couple others to the West he asked us to go to the East"

"Are you serious, if Shadis finds out about this he'll flip shit!" I hiss out, eyeing Armin's sleeping form warily.

"Which is why we'll tell him after we kill it!" Thomas grins manically "Think about it, if we take down an Aberrant he's bound to move us up! We can be a part of the Nightwatchers!"

Suddenly everything clicks and falls into place and I find myself grinning the same maniac like grin that he is. I can finally kill one of the damn beasts. I nod furiously, kicking the stupid scratchy wool blanket off of myself and pulling my boots back on.

I glance over at Armin, weighing whether or not to wake him up; I don't want to drag him into danger he's terrified enough as it is. I grab Thomas's outstretched hand, allowing him to pull me to my feet; his teammates cheer behind him.

I move to follow them out the room but a steady calm hand wraps itself around my ankle, I swallow around a lump in my throat and turn my body around partially, glancing down at my best friend. His eyes are full of worry and tears as he glares up at me angrily.

"Were you really going to just leave me!" He hisses, I don't know what he's angry about and I stare back down at him in agitation.

"I thought you wouldn't have wanted to come" I reply, still trying to keep my voice down so that I wouldn't wake anybody else. He sighs and releases me, grabbing his own boots and standing up beside me.

"I don't think it's a good idea, Eren" Armin says lightly. I sigh in annoyance but I understand what he means, and he understands that no matter what he says he can't change my mind. A part of me feels bad walking down the hall with him trailing behind me; I know he doesn't want to come, I know he's terrified. He's only coming solely because I am going and it hurts, it tears me apart; the two closest people in my life follow me and my ignorance with their hands clutched tightly. I hate myself for it; but I want this more than anything in the world.

It's been a long time since I'd been outside during the night; it's colder than during the day, the air sharper and a silence hung over everything. It was the time for the dead, and dead it was. Our little group consisted of me, Armin, Thomas, and his friends; Mylius. a boy with platinum blonde hair and obvious fear of what we were going to go up against, Nac, a boy much like Mylius on the fear level but with brushed back brown hair, and Mina. A girl with a lot of courage resembling Mikasa on some levels but she was easily startled. Reiner's group was only himself, his too tall friend with a mouthful of a name, and a short petite girl named Annie who went head to head with Mikasa for top of the class which was saying much. We met up at the surface of our hideaway to discuss the battle strategy.

"Jaeger, huh?" Reiner grinned, trying to cover his shock at my appearance "Not a bad choice, I thought for sure you were going to choose potato girl and the bald kid"

"Eren's got a lot of fight in him!" Thomas praised me, tugging an arm around my shoulder. I feel my face heat up somewhat and I smile brightly, Armin himself even giving a small smile.

Reiner was well built, too built if you ask me; nothing but muscle. And his friend was the complete opposite; tall and lanky, too tall. Annie was like a mix between the two; she had Reiner's blonde hair, strength and height but she had the others thin body and introverted attitude. She scoffed at the compliment that was given to me.

"Alright so you and your guys go towards where the gas station is, we're going to head over to where Eren spotted the old man" Reiner said with a more serious tone "I brought blades and stakes; everyone will carry two blades and then a stake, use the blades to decapitate or dismember them and then use this stake to drive them right back into the ground through their hearts!"

Everyone cheered, including me; I was ready for this. No more hay dummies or fake battle scenarios; I'm finally doing the real thing. I let Armin attach the battle gear onto me, covering my neck and other major artery/vein regions with a thick metal like cloth that we had discovered to be very useful against preventing being bitten. I make sure Armin's is on correctly and tightly before getting our weapons and fastening mine into my belt.

The air around us seems to drop a few degrees as we departed; snow gently falling from the clouded over sky above, freshly lying over the snow that had already been on the ground. I hate winter; it's cold and lifeless just like everything else.

As we make our way silently through the night, my opinions begin to change. Everything is dark and cold; the night air is hushed with a silent stagnant promise, one that I couldn't place but it felt wrong, terribly wrong. I have most of my face covered; including my body. If you didn't die by aberrant you would definitely die by the extreme cold.

The only sound the breached the nightly silence was the crunching of iced over snow under our feet as we attempted at silently scoping out the gas station. Everything was perfect there was nothing. A part of me felt relieved under the mask of disappointment that I wore. I want to fight the monsters but there is no denying the fear that you get when you face them.

It was too quiet for there to be nothing honestly, not a cricket or an animal to be heard or seen; either the aberrant were with the other group or they were already dead somewhere. Armin was visibly beyond relieved; I give him a small reassuring smile.

"Looks like there was nothing to worry about after all, huh?" I joke with a laugh. He smiles a bit more but Thomas does not like it one bit; he seems vividly disappointed.

"This sucks ass!" he growls loudly, kicking a pile of snow on the curb, nearly tripping the process. His voice echoes into the night, and that's when it begins.

Low crunching and growling sounds from the left, more coming from the right. The dim, blinking light from the once gas station did little to light up the surroundings. Armin immediately locked up behind me, his body going tense with fear.

I scout and gaze out, all of us huddling in a small group; there was more than one. Their growls and groans chimed in a horrendous chorus as they circled us blindly. It was dark, cold, and we were slow. The light looked as if they were going to give out any second, shadows from their forms danced around us; their silhouettes visible. There were four; four aberrants.

One dared to step forward, revealing a gruesome looking face, fangs bared and wings. They had been long gone; their bodies were dry and grey, skin clinging to deformed bone and eyes ravenous; holding a hunger that desperately wanted to be sated. And here we were; the perfect prey. Thomas wavered, taken aback by home many there were, his eyes wide like saucers.

"F-four!" Mina screeched, her hands shaking. I had my blades drawn, I was ready for combat; Thomas gave me a side glance and nodded, swallowing around the lump in his throat.

"C'mon guys!" He yells loudly, I grip my blades, the handles feeling hot against my palms; he charges forward at the one that had dared to breech the little light we had. I start to go after him and then it comes from the side; slamming into Thomas's side, I see red spurt from where it hits him. His face is stricken with shock and my eyes widen; what happens in a mere second seems like minutes as I see him glance at me, our eyes locking before he's out of my sight. Just like that he was gone, the only proof of him having being there was the red rivulets of his blood splattering into the white snow and staining it. His screams cut through the night and are cut off just as quickly as they come. I open my mouth to scream his name, my mind and vision going blind with rage.

Mina screams loudly at the scene; and then they charge. They're on us in a matter of seconds, I grab jab at the one infront of me, managing to slice it in its arm before it has the chance to move. It rears back into the darkness. I glance around frantically, trying to keep Armin near me.

The deformed monsters look like nightmares as they dance around us; one as small as a child but with teeth as large as its arms goes for Mina. It's agile and quick and darts up her body like a monkey would a tree; Mina shakes and screams, trying to pry it off of her. It grips at her head, its nails digging into her face as it pulls its head back. It's mouth unhinges like a snakes, going wide and Mina can only try and stab at it with her blades as it swoops down. More blood flies, Mina decapitated body falls below the aberrant.

Nac and Mylius scream for Mina but it's too late. The aberrant focuses on her body and begins to feed on it like a parasite. I feel fluids travel up my throat at the site. I'm frozen on site with Armin's against my back. I jab my weapons at anything that moves near me, fending them off but barely.

I don't register Nac's cry of my name, I see him come flying towards me, aiming above my head with his blade. I dunk down and whatever was about to slam into me slams into him, he screams bloody murder and kicks, thrashing wildly as the massive flesh pulls him into the darkness.

Armin is crying and screaming, I push him to his feet below me, trying to protect him. Mylius is nowhere to be seen. I'm left alone with my best friend, one of the only people I have left in my life. He was there for me for so long, and I brought him into this. I search around frantically, tears and choked sobs forcing their way out of my body. And then I hear it; I hear his scream.

"Eren!" I whip around; one of the aberrant; a wild and nasty looking one with a large toothpick like body, walking around on all fours with its limbs twisted to the side; has Armin by his foot. It's trying to drag him away. I drop on of my blades, not caring as it clatters to the blood stained snow below me, and grab at his arm jerking him from the monster. It tugs back, howling madly; I growl loudly. Armin's eyes are wide and big, blue with horror. There's no way he could make it out of here with the beast latched on to him.

I look around at the others that are visible; still munching on our fallen teammates. I clench my eyes and reflect on my past memories and then register Armin's face streaming with tears of horror and his screams and pleads. I let my other blade clatter to the floor and instead reach down, my now free hand gripping around the stake, I jerk it from my belts and spare Armin one last smile.

He stares in horror as I drive the wooden stake into my left shoulder.

Pain blooms and I scream in pain; the monster now focusing on me and releasing Armin's leg. I glare at it and around at the others that were hidden.

"Come on!" I scream hoarsely, yanking the wooden weapon out with another scream of agony "I'm right here!"

Armin stares at me in horror as the beast screech, lurching forward and latching itself onto my shoulder. My eyes widen as it's teeth tears through my clothing and digs deep into my skin. I clench my hand around the stake once more, driving it up into the chest of the monster. It releases me and lets out it own ragged and gurgled roar of pain before it's body begins to fold in on itself; decaying rapidly until only a pile of dust remains. This quickly catches the attention of the other aberrant; one of their own fallen and fresh blood still alive. I glance down at Armin, with a pained and angered look, one hand covering my wound as I stagger to my feet.

"Go!" I scream at him, the other three aberrant emerge from the shadows seething with hunger and rage as they regard me "I'll by you some time; go back" I whisper faintly, keeping a blade in my hand.

"E-er-eren" he blubbers loudly, now isn't the time for him to panic and freeze up; he needs to get back.

"Go!" I yell loudly, grabbing a fresh blade from my belt, my last one "You promised me you'd be there for me until they fall right? Go, go back to Mikasa and be with her, I can't let you die too; I'm already dead Armin, I've been bitten…please, just go"

I turn to the monsters, their screeching and clacking drawing nearer. My shoulder is searing with pain from the bite and stake wound; I faintly recognize the retreating footsteps of Armin as he darts away. The one with the wings howls and moves to go for him but I quickly move slice at it's direction, capturing it's attention.

I should be turning; their poison will overtake my body and start to change me if they don't attack soon. I yell at them; my voice ragged and sore, I sound like the animal. My vision goes red and for a moment I believe that I am turning into them. I see them; their dead hearts, their decaying bodies, the blood on them. I smell them; I smell the death.

My body lurches forward as if it's been possessed; I dart and dodge from their attacks, jumping impossibly high and landing on the back of the winged one. I can feel the gin etched on my face as I grab at its feeble wings of dead skin, tearing them near completely off of its body. It screeches and the one that had killed Mina jumps through the air, I raise my foot and with an inhumane amount of strength my foot comes crashing down into its head. It crunches and the black hot blood that remained in their bodies gushes out. The one below me continues to howl in pain from its wings being torn almost off its body, trying to crawl away from under me. I raise my foot and bring it down into its back; repeating the action until it's nothing but a pile of ash.

Finally I lock eyes with the frightened one; the largest of the four; the one who has killed Thomas. Its mouth is seared with his blood, it licks its chapped lips, the remains of my friend still on them. Another burst of anger and adrenaline; I surge forward. My body crashing into it and my jaws locking onto its neck. I blindly clamp down; my teeth sinking into its body before I jerk my head to the side; efficiently ripping its neck to shreds.

Ash surrounds me; my mind is hazy with anger and a hunger that I can't place. The wound on my shoulder aches wildly as my knees crash into the red snow below me. I gaze up at the brightening night. Am I turning? Am I dying? What did I do?

I barely register the damage I had done in my state if anger, much less consider how or why I did it before a booted foot comes crashing into my temples, knocking me clean out.

* * *

**Is Eren turning into an Aberant? Who is the mysterious booted foot? Where the fuck is Jeany boy?  
Stay tuned and find out. **


	2. Chapter 2

A burning, aching fire blossomed in my throat; I want to scream or cry out but darkness looms over me, smothering my body like blanket and keeping me under. I'm unconscious but I hear voices; I feel their presence. I want to wake up but the darkness is pulling me back; I'm numb and there is no escaping.

The only thing I can feel and am I aware of is the burning fire on my shoulder and in my throat; and the eyes that are boring into me. I can feel them but I can't see them nor hear what they say.

Ever so slowly, the numbness begins to recede, starting with my toes; the darkness begins to peel itself away from my body. I start to feel my feet and lower body as the light starts to brighten. I hear voices whispering, more pain begins to blossom. My ankles and wrists burn and scream in agony; they're bound by metal. A loud, audible groan escapes from throat, echoing out into the somewhat silent room.

A hushed silence looms over me as I begin to register my surroundings. My hands and feet are chained, I tug on the steel only to find my body pressed and bound against a small bed of some sort. A tightly knotted cloth remains in my mouth, making it incapable for me to speak or make any noise beyond a grunt or groan.

I force an eye open, adjusting slowly to the light that filled the rather large and empty room. My head pounded and ached, as well as the rest of my body, but I managed to force myself to remain conscious and gaze around.

Large iron bars are the first thing I see when my eyes open; beyond them lies a large bricked wall that physically shows it has been there for years; moss and dirt caking it. The next thing I see and realize is that not only am I chained, but I'm chained to a bed. Luckily enough, my clothes were still intact, aside from the wound near my shoulder. The cheap cloth was dyed a dark dried up red around the covered wound; someone has dressed it in what looks like a gauze of some sort.

I thrash around, jerking on my chains that bound me to the bed wildly but to no avail; I was stuck, sustained in a tiny cell in some fucker's dungeon. I try to recollect my thoughts on what had happened prior to my waking in the cell but the last thing that comes to mind is Armin's form running away. I silently pray under my breath that he made it and is alive with Mikasa; I can't live with myself knowing that because of me my best friend died.

With the small amount of space that I could reach, I use my left hand to gently prod at my shoulder; wincing visibly as small shocks of pain tingle around it with each touch. It felt horrible just as much as the rest of me felt horrible. I felt as if I'd been denied water for years, as well as sleep even though I had clearly just woken from unconsciousness. I didn't think much about food at the moment; I don't think I could hold it down long enough with the deaths of my teammates still fresh on my mind.

I don't know where I am, nor do I know if I'm even alone or not; but I shakily press my clothed back against the cell wall behind me; it was cool and felt rather nice against my sweaty, covered skin; and tugged my numb legs up against my chest with my good arm. I lean my head against them and let out a shaky, weak whimper; it's not from the pain racking though my body with every movement, nor is from my awakening in this dirty jail cell, but to the thought that because of my recklessness not only had I witnessed the death of so many innocent kids, but I also had drug my best friend into experiencing the same scenes. Not to mention I may have also caused his own death. And here I was; patched up poorly in a jail cell but otherwise completely fine.

I should be dead with them; I should have changed into an aberrant and killed off before I could have killed anyone. The new thoughts make me sick to my stomach and I flip over on my left, uninjured, side. I curl into myself, ignoring the new blooming and heated pain from my injury; I deserved it. With nothing to expulse from my stomach, I dry heave and sob rather loudly.

More heat races through my body, smothering me like a fire; I'm suffocating once more as the blanket of darkness is pulled back over me.

XoX

To say that my second awakening was worse than the last is an understatement; ice cold water splashed into my face like bullets against my skin. I jolted in my sitting position and my head knocked into the pole behind me. The first thing I register is the warm light of candles lining a stone wall, the second is the enormity of the room I'm in and the third is the thousands of pairs of eyes staring me down.

I cough and sputter, trying to glare around at all the face when a big and dark realization dawns upon me; they're vampires.

Their eyes were tinted red from their insatiable thirst and anger, their skin a ghostly pale color that illuminated the flames of the flickering candles in a dismal way, and hatred and bloodlust was directed at me. I shivered neither from fear nor the cold water, but from the anger swelling inside of me at the sight of the monsters. The monsters that had destroyed and near ruined everything that I had.

I felt a low angered noise build up in my chest but it was silenced by a whimper of pain as something cold and hard pressed against my wounded shoulder. I jerked from the pressure and turned to whoever had inflicted the sudden pain on me. Two elderly looking men were posted on either side of me, sneering down at my chained form.

"This needn't not take any longer, please withhold your personal opinions until the prisoner has finished the interrogation" I jumped a bit, startled by the harsh and dusty voice that boomed from above me. My head whipped upward in the direction of the speaker; a tall and old man stood on a podium like structure, gazing down at the crowd with dark, black eyes that held no emotion. Though vampires never age, the time they live does do a toll on their body and it is very visible; his skin was powdery and chalky and his hair had lost the once powerful shiny luster leaving behind dull and limp hair that he smoothed back against his scalp. He regarded me with discern as he removed his robes and pulled up his sleeves, only then did I see what was happening. I'm in a court trial, well more like an interrogation but they're going to decide what to do with me afterwards.

"Boy" The old man spoke with a monotone voice, seemingly both uninterested and displeased with the entire ordeal "Your name"

I glared up heatedly at the vampire, trying to think up a more colorful response to his question but settling on the only one that came to mind.

"Fuck off" I spat, for a moment I thought he had a flicker of amusement flash across his straight features but it must have been my imagination. He waved his hand and the hand that had once been on my shoulder once again grabbed it and added a little more pressure than necessary. I wanted to scream in agony, but I grinded my teeth together with a pained grunt instead. Just as fast as it had been applied to my shoulder, his hand was gone and I was left to recollect myself from the pain. I panted lowly in an attempt to calm myself and reconsider what my next move would be.

"_Your name?_" the question was repeated, a hushed barely audible, whispers fell over the crowd as they all examined me like I was an exotic animal in a cage; though I don't think they would treat exotic things like such, I'm more of a vermin to them as it seems.

"Eren" I manage to croak out, my throat was parched and begging for water or some form of liquid.

"Is that your full name?" The next question followed immediately, I grimaced at that, I didn't want to tell them anything more than they needed to know.

"It's all you should even care about" I respond in anger; this time when the pain was applied I did scream, it was loud and echoed against the walls; I could feel my injury bleeding through my shirt.

"The pain is needless if you would simply answer the questions, Eren" I wanted to laugh at the sick joke but I didn't have the energy to do so. I resumed my glaring only this time directed at the floor, after the vamp had finally released my shoulder; I slumped somewhat in exhaustion and weariness.

"Jaeger" I reply in a bitter tone "Eren Jaeger"

"Now, I understand that you were with the notorious _'Wings of Freedom'_, is that correct?" I grind my teeth at the mocking tone he uses to describe our group.

"Yes" I respond in a somewhat gruff voice, there's a slight collective gasp around the room and more heated whispers.

"I appreciate your newfound cooperation" he thanks me in a sarcastic manner before continuing "Approximately three nights ago there was an incident on the remains of Shiganshina; a group of rebels had unfortunately ran into a group of aberrant that they were mainly unsuccessful in fighting in; You were a part of this group am I correct?"

"Yes" My voice wavers as the memories flood back to me from the night once more, a pain deeper than the one on my shoulder burns within me.

"And, including yourself, there was four other?" My eyes widen and I let out a sigh of relief, a smile gracing my lips. They only found four bodies, Armin had to of escaped, he must have made it back! I feel relieved but also perturbed at the thought and receive many questioning looks.

"Five" I reply snarkily "There was five"

"There were only four other bodies recovered" I chuckle a little, receiving a growl from behind me.

"One made it out then" I grin in a half assed victory that only I would understand, my audience didn't take to kindly to my pleased manner.

"Regardless, on that night can you recall what had happened prior to you being knocked unconscious?" I tried to think back, the only closest memories I did have of that night were the ones of my friend's mangled bodies and Armin's screaming call for help. I try to picture and play it out, furrowing my eyebrows in frustration.

"They had died, everyone else; the four. My friend was about to get taken, I acted and injured myself" I sighed replaying the incident in my head "They turned on me and I told him to run…after that I don't remember anything other than a rhinoceros crashing into my temple"

"Are you sure that is all that you can recall?" I blink my eyes open and stare up at the man in question; what was he getting at? Looks of disgust and anger looked down at me as if I were the freak; the monster.

"Yes" I say as strongly as I can manage.

"He's lying!" Someone bursts from the left, along with a few others. I turn in shock and stare at the one who had spoken as he points a crooked finger at my form "He's with the rebels; it's in his nature to lie! We must destroy the abomination before it's too late!"

"What if they send more like him?" A woman cried from my right. I was stunned with confusion and shock at the cries they blurted out about me.

"He shouldn't exist, we need to dispose of him" The same man rebuttals, staring at me in disgust "He goes against the very fabric of our being, he must be destroyed"

"Enough!" The elderly vampire roared from his perch, turning his scrutinizing glare to my direction. My mouth is hanging open in disbelief and confusion as the fighting resumes on.

"With all due respect, Zackly, I think I have a better option than slaying the child" The voice was monotone yet held a high and authoritative ring to it. The old man, Zackly, turned to the new voice with a little respect glinting in his eyes; I managed to follow his gaze. The owner or the voice was a tall and built man that reminded me somewhat of Reiner with his body build and strikingly blonde hair that was slicked back. He had eyes strikingly similar to Annie's and Armin's, a bright sky blue, which sparkled as he held eye contact with me.

"Commander Erwin" Zackly nods somewhat "Go on"

"I propose that instead of disposing of the boy we keep him, at least until we can gather more information from him. It could be the key to winning the war against the rebels" Erwin states boldly, I shiver and grimace at the idea of being held captive by the monsters. I have no clue why they are scared of leaving me alive, but I'd rather die than be their captive "And if they are testing, and creating abnormalities like him; we could trace them from this one and dispose of it immediately"

"Please!" Someone scoffed loudly "He'll try and kill one of us the first chance he gets. We don't need him to find the others, he's useless". I couldn't argue with the trying to kill one of them, I'd try and kill as many as I could.

"Just like we have over what? Months now?" Erwin scowled, raising a challenging eyebrow before continuing "We've made absolutely no steps forward in finding the rebels location. I'm sure that we can handle a child"

"Absurd! He's a cretin, a mistake and he needs to be erased, him and the rest of his kind. Things like him shouldn't exist, it goes against everything!" I felt anger surge through me at the frantic words. I turned sharply and glared heatedly at the side of the room that it had come from.

"I'm the mistakes, the monster? You filthy leeches are the fucking monsters, if it weren't for you everything would be normal, and everyone would be alive" I spat dryly at them "and you're right, I would try to fucking kill every single one of you fucking pricks"

Silence loomed over the small court like room as I finished my miniature rant that I had no regret of yelling, even if I did sound like a child in doing so.

What feels like a hammer collides into my left temple, sending my head and the rest of my chained body reeling to the right, landing me straight on my wounded shoulder. I felt the searing pain, but my mind was hazy and groggy, spinning in both pain and confusion until the next hit landed in my stomach. It felt like ten tons of weight was stamping and beating me. I didn't have time to scream; much less time to even take in a gasp for air before the next hit came smashing into me taking it away. I felt my arm give way at a rather harsh stomp on my arm. My ears ringing like a fire alarm set off and everything spun around me; I could barely make out the dark figure looming over me like a hawk.

Cold fingers wove through my hair, jerking my head and upper upward towards the figure. At first I had thought that it was Erwin, but as my vision somewhat cleared I made out silver, narrowed eyes and raven hair. Definitely not him.

"Rivaille! Please, release him" I made out, still staring into those silver orbs in slight awe mixed with confusion.

"You were so intent on killing him not moments before" the man above me spoke, his voice husky and deep, it sent shivers racing down my body and made my head spin.

"He might go berserk like before!"

"You know" he says in just an audible enough voice as he leans down near me "I believe pain is the best way to discipline someone"

My head was shook lightly, sending my mind in another series of spins, I feel something cold and wet trail up my face quickly.

"What were you going to do? Kill him quickly and pray that he didn't do anything?" the voice questions with a mocking tone "He's weak, he can barely take a few hits and he's almost knocked out cold"

"Your Honor!" the other voice attempted at seeking aid from Darius.

"I've made my decision, he shall be put in Erwin and his squads custody" Darius announced, cutting off the other "But, they are given two weeks to get anything useful out of the boy, if nothing should rise then he will be executed due to treason and his alliance with the rebels"

There was a heated uproar but I could barely make out anymore, I stared blankly up into the dark silver eyes of my captor. The pressure on my head release and I fall back, never breaking the eye-contact until my head knocked into the floor. It was cold and hard, my head felt foggy and sticky as blood leaks from fresh wounds as a result of the blows that were delivered to my body.

The room grows silent, and at first I think that they're watching me again.

"Jeez Levi, you didn't have to be so harsh on the poor kid" a female voice breaks through the silence "I saw one of his teeth go flying out of his mouth!"

"Tck" The man audibly sighed, his tone practically painting a scowl on his face in my mind "I did what I had to, he's the key to finding the rest of them"

I don't have the energy to turn or move to where I could stare at the remainders on the room. The rest of the vamps had cleared out. I was left alone with god knows how many.

"You'll need to tend to his injuries and get him something to wear and eat. We'll need him awake for the time being, we need to begin questioning him immediately" it was Erwin's voice that spoke this time, he was close by the sound of it. I groan loudly and try to move away from the trio who stood near me.

"Brat looks like he's about to pass out any second now, better to have him under anyways" The grouchy attacker noticed, I feel his boot lightly tap my side, pushing me over on my back. My vision spins around me as I stare up at the ceiling, the shadows dance and flicker across it.

"It's better to have him unconscious when I work on him, I don't want him to try anything reckless" the female giggled in a way that sent shivers racing up my spine.

"Make sure you patch him up well, I don't need him bleeding, especially not in this place" Erwin adds in "It's a wonder that they could maintain their sitting with him bleeding so much"

"He has a rather exotic smell to him, I wonder what made him the way he is. I need to find out" The female inquired to herself in an all too giddy voice. There is a slight shuffling and a silence that follows.

"Well, better get it over with quick" his voice reappeared right next to my ear, I jolted and a steady hand caught my shoulders, digging painfully into my wound, before he bid me one last sentence.

"Lights out, Brat". The rhinoceros came crashing back into my temple for round two.

X o X

When I woke for the third time I was relocated once more; white surrounded me in a blinding way and as I moved to sit up on the hard surface I was currently resting on , buckled tight restraints held me down by my wrists and ankles. I would have tried to tug effortlessly on them, but the rings of bruises and scabbed over cuts from the previous shackles would only worsen and cause me more pain.

I blink my eyes to try and adjust to the brightly lit room, I don't think there is anyone else in the room other than myself. I feel numb and sluggish, no pain or burning but nothing god either. I part my chapped lips and take in a deep intake of air before mustering up enough strength to push my upper body forward, using my elbows as support I gaze around the small room.

I'm restrained on what looks to be some type of hospital examination table, padded for minimal comfort for whoever is strapped to it. I pant heavily as my body sluggish tries attempt at moving, my head spins with every little movement but I have enough energy to take in and comprehend my surroundings.

As was said prior to the asshole knocking me out, I was taken and patched up. The wound on my shoulder no longer burned and ached; it was covered with a nice white cloth then encased in white gauze like ribbons that ended in a nice little bow to tighten it in place.

I was almost certain that some bones in my body had been broken, but as I look over the rest of me, or at least what I could see past the white hospital like gown I was dressed in, I only see small bruises and scars. I don't know where my old clothes are, I feel heat rise to my cheeks at how revealing my current attire is.

I scowl half-heartedly and gaze around the room, my mind and energy becoming clearer and stronger. The room is small, almost twice as big as the cell I was in when I had first woke up. White walls and white tiled floors with white cabinets and drawers. The table I'm on looks bolted to the floor so there's no trying to escape by scooting, not that that was ever a possibility anyways. The door leading out of the room is shut tightly with only a small, square glass window in the center to look out or in of.

I sigh loudly and with an equally loud groan I plop back down against the table, my head landing against the cushioned head rest.

"Giving up already?" a startled scream rips itself from my throat, in a flash a hand is covering my mouth, a cold one. Grey eyes narrow and I flush from embarrassment and anger. The hand is removed and Levi wipes it on my white gown with a disgusted face.

I scramble in my restraints, moving to sit up some and glare at the bastard fully.

"Still pissy I see" he notes with a small smile gracing his flawless features. I hate myself for finding him so dazzling, it was disgusting, it was in his structure to look this way; to lure humans to their death.

"Fuck you" I snap back at him, a look of amusement flashes across his face. He leans in close, very close; his breath tickles my neck and my face heats up.

"Do you know why you're not a aberrant, brat?" he whispers in an inhumane voice that sends shivers racing down my spine. I shake my head at the question, a question that I too had been asking myself for a long time.

"No?" he hums and leans impossibly closer until his cold, dead lips are barely touching my earlobe "You're immune to our venom"

Every bone in my body locks into place and my eyes widen significantly, he chuckles lightly and his teeth graze my ear. I hear him take in a deep breath before he jerks away from me, his nose scrunched up in what looks like disgust but a small smile still gracing his face.

"Do you know what that means, Brat" I stare straight ahead, my vision shaky as the possibilities raced in my mind but I knew very well what it could mean. But I'm not, I'm not a vampire. I would be thirsty, I wouldn't be hungry and I would be cold, dead, pale. I shake my ahead violently and glare at him.

"Quit fucking with me!" I snarl at him, jerking at my restraints. He scowls and shakes his head.

"Don't waste your breath, you're not a vampire" he says turning away from my angry body "We don't know quite yet what you are Jaeger, but you're not human"

I furrow my eyebrows in confusion, staring at my shaking hands. I'm not human? As much as I want to deny and say that I am I know that there is something wrong with me. He's right, I should be an aberrant, I should be running around deformed and blood thirsty trying to kill anything with a pulse. But I'm strapped onto a table, alive and breathing. And then it dawns upon me, I jerk my head up and stare into those cold grey eyes in question.

"What does it mean then" I ask with a shaky voice, my glare never leaving his "What does it mean that I'm immune to your poison?" His smile returns tenfold, and he slightly turn his body as to full face me.

"It means" he begins, flashing me a dazzling smile while baring his teeth, he was perfect; beautiful in every way possible and it made me hate him just as much as it made me weak in the stomach and dazzled by him "That you better not get on my bad side, Jaeger, because it won't kill you if I decide that I don't want to go to the blood bank for dinner"

My blood runs cold at his words and even his looks can't hinder the rage that boils inside of me.

"F-fuck you, you short monstrous prick!" I scream loudly, my teeth grinds together as I cruse at him some more. He seems pleased but annoyed with my comments and in a flash his hand is gripping my cheeks painfully tight.

"Watch your tongue, little brat" he hisses "Until the moment they decide to drain you of every last drop, you're under my watch and if you think for one minute that I'm going to put up with your shit you're wrong. I'll have you on the ground, clinging to the last ounces of life, begging me to stop in a matter of seconds. Don't fuck with me, now you're going to sit here and wait for Hanji to return quietly; for every drop of blood that I make you spill otherwise, I'll force you to clean up with your tongue. Understand?"

For a moment I felt something that I hadn't felt for a long time. A feeling that I thought that just because I had witnessed my mother dying, that just because I was vengeful and hateful of the vampires I was immune to. But reality came crashing into me and I felt tears flow down my cheeks as it once more seized my heart the way it had when the vampires had first took over us.

Fear.


End file.
